Taking Legal Action in a Car Accident Claim

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Going through a road traffic accident can be a difficult experience. Even a minor fender bender can be quite traumatising. If you’ve experienced a road traffic accident where you suffered personal injury, damage to your vehicle, or loss of earnings because of someone else's negligent driving, then it’s natural to consider legal action. However, a car accident claim is a legal process and raises questions of its own. For this reason, we’ve put together this article to help you understand some components of that legal process which go towards winning a lawsuit or compensation claim for a road traffic accident. These are steps which can be taken to maximise your chances of success.

It’s important to note that you do not need to have all of these checkboxes ticked in order to win a case. Having just one of following points on your side would be hugely beneficial in making a successful claim. All points are applicable and useful to know for an accident which might happen in the future and several points are useful to know if considering taking legal action for an accident which happened in the past.

1. Keep Calm
The first thing to do at the scene of an accident is to remain calm. This may seem counterintuitive, but knowing this in advance will maximise chances of maintaining a level head in if one occurs. It will enable you to be more effective help to those around you, gather necessary information while there and generally help to reduce the negative impact of the event. Losing your temper with the offending driver will not help your case later on.

2. Call the Emergency Services
The second thing to do is to phone the emergency services. Being calm will help you to effectively explain the circumstances to the operator who will then be able to quickly and effectively call all the necessary emergency services to the scene of the car accident.

3. Assess the Scene and Help People
Only when the emergency services are on their way should you further assess the situation and help anybody that needs help with any personal injuries sustained. This can save lives. If the car accident was a serious one, then encourage anybody who is able-bodied to help too. When the emergency services arrive, try to be as helpful and compliant as you possibly can although this will often just involve keeping clear.

4. Important Information to Gather
While the emergency services are doing their job, be sure to swap insurance information with all vehicles included in the traffic accident. Keep this information safe and make sure to take a note of license plate numbers. Take down the number of the police officer dealing with the scene of the road traffic accident and be sure to get the incident number used to log the accident.

5. Photographic Evidence
Not all types of evidence hold the same weight in court. Some types are stronger than others and photographic evidence is one of the strongest. The majority of cell phones these days have cameras, so be sure to take many photographs of the scene of the accident with your phone. This can also be an easier way to note the license plate numbers of other vehicles involved and. emailing the photos to yourself is a good way to store them securely for later.

6. Eyewitnesses
Another very strong type of evidence to present in court is an eye witness. If anybody nearby saw the road traffic accident happen, be sure to swap names and phone numbers with them. Always make sure that you let a witness know that you appreciate the help. If you’re reading this article after a road traffic accident has happened and you know anybody personally that witnessed the scene, start contacting them and putting together a list.

7. Calling the Specialists
The last thing to do is to get in touch with a personal injury lawyer, or claims specialist. Most good ones will give you a free evaluation on your case before you go ahead and many specialise specifically in car accident cases. Choosing a specialist will increase the chances of a success as they work on these types of cases day in and day out. Take time to read the website of the specialist whose website you're on. If they appear to be part of regulartory bodies such as the American Association for Justice, then it's more likely that they're a reputable practioner of law. You can start searching for personal injury lawyers in your state right away. Good luck.